Who Wants to Be Hugh Hefner?

Ask any American male whom he most wants to trade places with and Hugh Hefner is likely to be on the short list.

That dream can virtually come true in Playboy Enterprises' forthcoming simulation game in which Joe Gamer gets to don Hef's silk pajamas and rule his hedonistic media empire.

As a result of a deal between Playboy, Arush Entertainment (maker of the popular Duke Nukem shooter games) and Groove Games, average Americans -- most of whom will probably be male -- can pretend for a few hours that they, too, live surrounded by a bevy of buxom, barely clothed women.

Due out in 2004, the simulation will include living the "lavish lifestyle of Hef, including hanging out at the Playboy mansions and throwing parties," said Donald Case, marketing manager for Arush.

The game probably won't show as much skin as the magazine does, Case said, but there might be totally topless Playmates. "Think sexy, not sex," said Case, who predicts the game will carry an M rating for mature audiences.

Arush pitched Playboy on the game, Case said, because of the potency of the Bunny brand and its "attractive library of assets."

In addition to facing Hef's most challenging day-to-day decisions -- blonde, brunette or both? -- the game will require players to stay abreast of a simulated publishing world and make top-level management decisions.

Case said the game's simulation strategies might include incidents taken from Playboy magazine's history, such as Hef self-publishing the first issue in 1953, opening Playboy nightclubs, and launching video and television ventures.

Wes Nihei, editor-in-chief of GamePro Magazine, says he thinks gamers will be up for a title based on the Playboy brand. Just having the trademark bunny on the box gives the game a certain "titillation factor," he said.

Nihei said the game is breaking new ground: He hasn't seen a simulation game try to replicate a real person's life before. And although topless Playmates will draw many gamers, he said, the game must also successfully flesh out the intricacies of managing a media company.

"It's an interesting concept to make a sim about the publishing business," Nihei said. "The serious side to it could also be very appealing."

Nihei said gamers have snapped up adult-oriented titles, such as BMX XXX, which also "happens to be a good game with well-built activities."

Game makers are just starting to develop games that indulge adult gamers' racier fantasies, he said. "We're only seeing the first attempts (at capturing older gamers). You are going to encounter more and more sexually themed material."

Gamers among Playboy magazine's 3.1 million subscribers are likely to be the first in line to buy the game, said Alex Vaickus, a senior vice president at the adult entertainment empire. Playboy subscribers spent more than $300 million on games last year.

"Fans of the brand have long admired and embraced Playboy's vision of 'the good life,' and the game will ultimately reflect that," he said.